


shining, perfectly

by tauri



Category: Pocket Monsters: X & Y | Pokemon X & Y Versions
Genre: Community: 31_days, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-01
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-02-19 16:08:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13127151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tauri/pseuds/tauri
Summary: Malva comes to a realization.





	shining, perfectly

**Author's Note:**

> 31_days challenge: 01-11-2017 - "be my thrill"

Malva supported Lysandre's ideals; that much was obvious. One didn't reach the top echelons of Team Flare without doing so, for as much as she kept _that_ hidden. Lies on all sides - she would smile at those in her day-to-day life, and they would never suspect a thing. She would smile, too, at Lysandre, and know that he had little reason to doubt her.

His ideal, always, was _perfection_. _Perfect people_ with a _perfect vision_ for a _perfect world_ \--... and all that that entailed. Malva understood that, but felt her thoughts turn a degree more vicious under contemplation. Perfection was a very noble ideal to aim for, she would never have said otherwise, but Lysandre seemed to lack the desire to attain perfection, to hold it, grasp it, and then _shatter_ it. What better was there than a beauty spoiled? _Perfection_ was one thing, but it was thoughts of _what comes after_ \-- _that_ was what brought a rush of excitement to Malva's heart. (Lysandre didn't need to know that, though. It wasn't anything to do with _him_.)

Then, there was Diantha. It had taken time for Malva to come to terms with her feelings - that she even _had_ those feelings in the first place. It had wrongfooted her from every angle; she was perfectly aware of charm and attraction used as tools, as _weapons_ , but she suddenly found herself unable to shake the part of her that said _this isn't like that. It isn't like any of those things_. She refused to classify it - it certainly couldn't be _love_ , let alone anything else. And yet it persisted, something she couldn't calculate or predict. Something that Diantha seemed completely unaware of, in a manner that only granted Malva further frustration.

 _Is this on purpose?_ She'd wonder that frequently. Casual smiles and brief touches, useless conversation that Malva still felt _somehow_ captivated by - was it all for a reason? She couldn't think of one. To what advantage would all of this behavior put Diantha? As such, she often found herself at a loss on how to react. She'd vocalize that, at times, hoping that the act of questioning alone didn't leave her too vulnerable.

" _What is this for?_ "

As confused as Malva felt, those questions only seemed to turn that sentiment back towards Diantha herself. She'd look puzzled, for a moment, and then smile - radiant and shining, as always - and say something about _friendship_ (or _whatever_ ). Malva didn't care about that, and found it strange that Diantha would - provided that her answers were truthful, of course. Malva had no reason to doubt her, but could still find scant reason to take her at face value, either. That wasn't to say that there was no advantage to nurturing that friendship - the level of Diantha's fame was known across Kalos, as well as far beyond its shores. For as much as she might have downplayed it, Diantha had a level of power, and _that_ was always welcome.

"Have you... met with Lysandre, at all?"

 _That_ question felt like it came out of nowhere. Like many of Diantha's questions, it caused Malva to pause; immediately, alarm bells rang through her mind. _Why? What have you heard?_

"You could say that we're... acquainted. Why do you ask?"

"We spoke, recently, in Lumiose. It was only a brief conversation, you understand... his words worried me, that's all."

"Oh? What did he say?"

"... I'm sure it's nothing, really. Just, he holds such an extreme view towards beauty...! I suppose I should find it flattering, perhaps, but... I wonder." She seemed troubled, as she spoke, but reluctant to speak further on the issue. "Between that which he said to me, and the things he's spoken of to Augustine--..."

"Hmm...?"

Diantha shook her head, as if shaking away the negativity. "Please, think nothing of it. I'm sure my concerns are of no importance."

"Well... if you say so."

That particular conversation lay undisturbed between them, simply words spoken to pass the time on an afternoon at the Pokemon League. Despite that, Malva found herself thinking of that conversation further as time passed afterward. She even confronted Lysandre on the issue, albeit in a casual fashion - merely asking if he had met with Diantha, and of what they'd spoken of. Both stories fit together neatly; it seemed that, in his own way, Lysandre had been nudging his ideals towards Diantha, just as an idle experiment to see what sort of response she would have. As it was, she had been quick in her rejection; Lysandre smiled at the memory. " _A shame_ ," he'd said. " _Truly, she is beautiful. Who else better to embrace the idea of a perfect world? But her mind is tethered to complacency. I understand her position; in a way, that naivety is quite charming in itself, don't you think?_ "

Malva didn't recall her response to those words, but the feeling they caused burnt within her. She knew better than to display her feelings, but the act of quashing her anger was irritating in itself. It almost surprised her, though, knowing that Lysandre's words made her _angry_. That line of thought was not unusual for him, so why...?

_she's not a target for your 'perfect world'_

_don't drag her into this_

_if anybody is to corrupt her, then it should be--..._

Malva had been alone in her apartment, sat facing the balcony doors and staring out of the glass at the moonlit city when she'd made _that_ realization. _Oh!_ It seemed so obvious, suddenly.

It had taken her so long to understand Diantha's perspective, and she still wasn't sure that she trusted it entirely. For all that Malva could deduce, Diantha was bright and cheerful and _so into this whole 'friendship' thing_ \--... but she felt very aware of how she, too, appeared to Diantha, and how little of herself she felt like giving away at any given point in time. Malva knew that not everybody operated in the same way, but that it was only common sense to assume that they _did_ , or at least, that they _could_. For the most part, though, she believed Diantha to be as she presented herself, as open and trusting as anyone could be. And why shouldn't she be? Doors opened easily when you were _a beautiful person_ , after all.

The world could be ugly, too. _You know that, right? You do know that?_ In the moment that Malva had realized her feelings towards Diantha were unpredictable, she'd felt powerless - just for that moment. However, that could also be turned around; there was, perhaps, nothing wrong in encouraging that level of interaction, drawing close her trust... and it was all for _the plan_ , Malva knew that much, but Diantha was a side-project. Her dealings with Lysandre were work, but her friendship with Diantha was a _hobby_. Perhaps the plan would come to fruition, in which case they would deal with that as it happened, but in the meantime--...

Perhaps there was something exciting in those unpredictable feelings, too. And Diantha seemed somewhat distrustful of Lysandre, which was good; _don't pay attention to anything he says to you. Just listen to me, Diantha. Let's laugh together about it afterwards._

_Your audience will never know of you and me, and you'll never know of me._

_Perfect._


End file.
